Five Great Ways to Boost Your Power in Job Offer Negotiations

The very easiest time to get a pay raise is before you even take a job. Employers more or less assume you'll be asking for more when they make you an offer for a position. But like any negotiation, how much you can ask for depends largely how much power you have going into the discussion. Follow these tips to get the leverage you need.

Market Yourself Well From the Beginning
If you're into the negotiation phase of the process, you're obviously at the top of the candidate pool. But that doesn't necessarily mean the employer is convinced you deserve to be paid what you envision as a fair salary. Unfortunately, by this time they've largely drawn their final conclusions about you as a candidate. Thus it's too late to demonstrate that you're worth more until you actually start the job. And even then it can be tough. So when you start to send out resumes and trot off to interviews, remember to consistently make the case that you're worth every bit of what you think you are.

Know Your Strengths and Advantages
Your individual abilities and talents are what set you apart from rival candidates and make you valuable. For that reason, they're what give you the most power in negotiations. So before you even start your job search, assess what makes you valuable in any given opportunity. Then write those points down so you can review and remind yourself of them as you go. Being aware of these advantages helps give you the leverage you need to negotiate from position of strength. Naturally, the more rare and sought after your particular talents, the more power they give you. But your advantage doesn't have to be in just one particular thing. Your indidvidual combination of strenghts and talents are unique. If they fit right with the employer's needs, that mix alone can be give you plenty of power.

Be Flexible and Fast on Your Feet
Job offer negotiations tend to only last a few rounds. Dragging them out more than that increases the risk of looking stubborn or difficult to people who you'll soon be working for. If you want to make the most of this brief opportunity, you have to be able to think fast and be flexible. Maybe they won't give you the salary you're hoping for. But a flexible mindset allows you to see other opportunities to possibly make up for the shortfall. So don't get fixated on one element of the package.

Know What You're Worth
Do your homework and know from the beginning what a reasonable range of compensation for your work is. That way you know what you're worth and whether or not what they're offering is at least in the ballpark. There are several Websites that detail what salaries for different professions are. The most popular is Salary.com. Remember to take into consieration, however, that salaries vary a great deal by region and from industry to industry.

Be Brave
There's absolutely no harm in asking, as long as you put things in the right tone and say them at the right time. You just have to have the nerve to open your mouth and let the words come out. Think of all you could gain from just asking one simple question. Then take a deep breath and go for it. What's the worst that can happen? They say no? Big deal. You'll live. And if you can't get over being chicken about negotiating aggressively, soften your approach by first asking if there's room to discuss a particular element of the package. That way you can test the waters and gauge how receptive they are to negotiating somehting before you plunge all the way in.